New exhibitions
STYLING A LIFE
Ghanaian artist Musah Swallah recalls as a child watching with wonder as his father cut the community’s hair in the open-air barbershop of his West African hometown. Not surprisingly, bold sculptural haircuts—a popular expression of pride among Africans, Black Americans, and the African Diaspora—are frequently the focus of his striking portraits. Equally prominent are powerful visions of proud Muslim women wearing hijab. None of Musah’s models is the subject of the viewer’s gaze. Drawn from among his friends, art students, and Instagram followers, each possesses agency. And projects a potent message: Black is beautiful.
IMAGINED OTTOMANS
A Ukrainian slave girl who becomes queen of an empire. A Pasha’s blue-eyed son who becomes a spy in the German army. A harem eunuch who conspires in the death of a prince. A shipwrecked Venetian sailor who’d gladly die in the arms of his captor. These are a few of the (mostly) fictional individuals whose portraits and fascinating stories self-taught Turkish artist Alper Demirci masterfully presents. In-depth knowledge of his homeland’s history—from the 14th-century origins of the Ottoman Empire to the 20th-century birth of the Turkish Republic—adds authenticity that breathes life into this cast of intriguing characters.